PORTLAND, Tenn. (WKRN) – Portland police are on the lookout Wednesday night for an armed robber who entered a quiet home décor store and held up the clerk.

“I was scared to death, and I was shaking,” the woman told News 2.

It happened Tuesday afternoon as she was working behind the register at Country and Primitive of Tennessee on Highway 31 West.

That’s when a man entered the store and demanded all the money in the register.

“He said to me, ‘I know you have more money.’ So I gave him the money I had from my own wallet. He just acted like he was in total control,” the victim recalled.

(Photo: WKRN)

According to the woman, the white man with sandy blonde hair was wearing painter’s coveralls and is missing a front tooth.

The woman told News 2 he is remarkably calm as he showed her the pistol in his waistband.

“I didn’t know if he would pull it out and use it on me,” she said. “It was very, very scary.”

She told News 2 she called 911 after the man left the store.

“A crime like this, a location like this, desperation is what comes to mind. They need money quick and they’ll do what they have to do to put their hands on it,” Det. Jason Williams with Portland police said.

The woman said only one thing went through her mind as the robbery was taking place.

“I didn’t know if he would kill me. I was thinking of my kids. That was the thought going through my head. Not the money. I was thinking about my kids,” she recalled.

The suspect is a white man with blonde hair and is missing a front tooth. He’s about 5 feet 11 inches or 6 feet tall. Anyone with information is urged to call Portland police at 615-325-3434.